Beyond the Barrel 2014

The annual NACC summer show, 'Beyond the Barrel' always seemed to be a show that would not have Falls images (BEYOND the barrel, get it?). Of course, there were always falls images somewhere in the show, it is only a dozen blocks from the great cataracts. I decided last year to put in an abstract consisting of the water crashing into a boulder at the precipice and it was received well, so this year I am showing that boulder from the back side. I know the location well because I usually site the rock for a landmark when I paint the Horseshoe Falls water.

Another Surprise on the Path, 16x20 oil, c. K. Schifano

 Both of my entries are plein air but they are totally different in size, color, subject, location and even application. A painting trip last month to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for the juried Camp Hill Plein Air event was different for me as it was a new location, hilly and summery, with unknown streets and buildings to navigate. There are several bridges spanning the Susquehanna River, one of them has an exit to 'City Island', home to a baseball stadium, vintage train ride, beach, ice cream stand, miniature golf and more. From an empty parking lot I saw the brilliant colors of these stored mini buildings, probably used for cotton candy and roasted nut sales in summer. They were gathered on a small hilltop while a massive Sycamore tree raised up from the ground level close to the lot. The humor of little houses, big tree struck me and I spent a pleasant afternoon painting the scene.

Put the Little House Behind the Big Tree, 16x12 oil, c. K. Schifano

It seemed like millions of birds were chattering in the thick bushes behind me, but I just listened. When the painting was nearly finished, I leaned back on my car to contemplate the scene and my painting. At that moment, a pair of orange Orioles flew to my feet, my dark sneakers had bright green laces and pink trim. Orioles like oranges and other fruit, I guess they were tempted by the colors but nearly surprised me off balance. Every painting has its own story and special memories.

The show will be up for the summer, the opening is on Saturday, June 21 6:30-9, with awards given that night. Open to the public.

Guerrilla Painter 9x12 LapTop box

An NFPAP paintout at Gateway Park in Tonawanda was a great opportunity to just sit in the park where I often stroll, to admire the view and boats and on the weekends, listen to live music. A Thursday morning, the water was empty of boats and there were few visitors as the weather report was not very promising although it was quite nice while we painted and had lunch. 

My new paintbox from Judson Art Outfitters is keeping me in the 9x12 size range which is a pretty good discipline for me, the pictures all dry and cure on the same mid size rack in my studio. You can see how the painting fits inside the lid, under my palette are tubes and brushes. With my lap or a tripod I can paint anywhere comfortably. Two wet paintings can fit, back to back. I tape white nonabsorbent palette paper to the wood mixing area, most artists mix their paints on the panel, for some reason I never got into it. I can pull the used paint mixes out easily; several pages are taped on top of one another. It is just so portable and convenient!

I have yet to discover a way to connect my umbrella safely to my new light weight setup, a good breeze would take the whole setup away. Seated, I can fit under it but I also like to stand to paint. I have a choice of a 'Shade Buddy' tall umbrella and a small flexible one to attach to the box, using what I have now is helping me decide the next step.

Walking Bridge at Long Homestead, unfinished oil painting

Emily Carr

Emily Carr is a 19th century artist, an explorer, fearless and brave, willing to undergo extreme discomfort, ravenous bugs, slithering and biting things to document the totems of native people of the northwest as well as the landscape of towering trees, majestic mountains and streams. She was driven to capture expression with her paintbrush, finding a compliment in being labeled a Fauve.  Her work is a historical document of ancestor poles that were sold, ruined or stolen. She is considered an honorary member of the Group of Seven in Canadian art history.

This scene from the East side of Tuscarora State Park was painted with Emily Carr in mind. I hoped to show respect for our mature evergreens and the meadows of wetlands in rich and loose color, painted with a brisk wind at my back and a serious chill in the day.

Channeling Emily Carr, oil on board 14x11

 The book The Forest Lover by Susan Vreeland is an embellished novel of her life as a painter, her travels into the Northwest and into Alaska in search of carved totems to draw and paint. The week after I painted this, I drove to Pennsylvania to paint and listened to the book on CD. Totally inspiring, but coincidental that I had just completed this painting.

Influenced by Wolf Kahn

A few years ago, I appeared on a channel 7 morning show and in the interview I was asked which artists were my favorites. I flubbed the answer, since any names that would answer that question changes regularly, and also was not something I thought much about, I like so many artists equally. If I had been asked who influenced my artwork, I would have a completely different list. John Singer Sargeant, all of the Group of Seven, Emily Carr, Robert Henri, maybe Georgia O'Keeffe, Charles Hawthorne and many of my painter friends including my husband.

Recently, I was asked by Carl Judson to reconsider Wolf Kahn as a 'favorite'. My main interaction with Kahn's work was presenting a workshop/paintout based on his visit and artwork created in Niagara Falls for his Castellani Art Museum show. Loving the Falls as I do, I objected to his severe abstraction and garish colors, simplifying views and places I know so well.

I thought about this challenge and when Judson and I went there to paint, I eliminated details, heightened colors and broke the landscape into color fields. The huge plateau of snow and dramatic shadow, along with the shapes of mist, water and background made the composition appear to be composed of just a few puzzle pieces, hard edged and flat. I like it. I proceeded to make a second painting from the same vantage point including more information. I might have painted more on it, but the light was changing; by mid afternoon, the gorge fills with light and the shadows you see here are gone.

  Channeling Wolf Kahn, 14x11 oil on board

Early Spring at the Shoe, 8x12 oil on canvas

Saturday Quick Draw, Camp Hill

A 'Quick Draw' involves starting, completing and turning in a framed painting in a limited time frame. In Camp Hill we had two hours, this is on a 9x12 panel that I chose because I had a single mid size frame left and it was not too big a surface for the time allotted. I went to a lovely garden within a block of the display area and shared this view with 4 other artists, but only one had a picture that was remotely similar to this. I was tempted to offer a trade with her but lost that opportunity as she had two hungry little ones with her.

After a long gray winter, these huge mounds of azaleas are so attractive to me. I cannot comprehend how one chooses to paint a winning scene, so I just pick what I like. There were many beautiful and distinctive homes in the Quick Paint area but after several days of working I knew my wrist was not going to continue to correctly make the straight lines that I would need for architectural perspective. Alas, the garden fence is perfectly straight!

24th & Walnut, Harrisburg. 9x12 oil on birch panel